Ted Peshak

Biography

Ted Peshak was born Theodore Joseph Peshak on Dec. 22, 1917, in Plymouth, Iowa. He was the house director for Coronet Instructional Media, a major producer of the genre known as "classroom training films", in the 1940s and 1950s. Many of the actors appearing in his films were his family, friends and neighbors from Libertyville, IL, where he lived. He was trained as a journalist at the University of Iowa and was a photographer during his Army service during World War II, and also photographed and directed training films during his army hitch. After working at a variety of jobs, including an advertising agency, he went to work for Coronet as a director, his debut there being Shy Guy (1947) (its leading man was future Bewitched (1964) star Dick York). He eventually left Coronet and started his own company, Peshak Films, and directed industrial films for a variety of clients, including McDonald's and the American Health Care Association. He left the filmmaking business in the 1960s and became a successful real-estate developer in Illinois. He died in Lake Forest, IL, on Oct. 9, 2006, of colon cancer.

Directed

1. How Do You Know It's Love? (1950) — Director
2. Appreciating Our Parents (1950) — Director
3. What to Do on a Date (1951) — Director
4. Are You Popular? (1947) — Director
5. Shy Guy (1947) — Director
6. Going Steady? (1951) — Director
7. Good Table Manners (1951) — Director
8. Act Your Age (Emotional Maturity) (1949) — Director
9. Everyday Courtesy (1948) — Director
10. Control Your Emotions (1950) — Director
11. Are You a Good Citizen? (1949) — Director
12. Developing Friendships (1950) — Director
13. Choosing Your Marriage Partner (1952) — Director
14. Date Etiquette (1952) — Director
15. Exercise and Health (1949) — Director
16. Good Sportsmanship (1950) — Director
17. How Billy Keeps Clean — Director
18. The Fun of Making Friends (1950) — Director
19. Earning Money While Going to School (1950) — Director
20. Choosing Your Occupation (1949) — Director
21. Family Life (1949) — Director
22. Improve Your Personality (1951) — Director
23. Make Your Own Decisions (1951) — Director
24. Understand Your Emotions (1950) — Director

Also appeared in

1. Our Living Constitution (1949) — Mr. Herndon